07.06.2004
DRAMA IN THE ATLANTIC...SKANDIA UP TO FIFTH
IN BRIEF:
* Morning of drama in the Open 60 fleet: PRB loses her mast and ARMOR LUX loses her keel within hours of each other. Vincent Riou and Bernard Stamm are both safe.
*"I cannot stop thinking about the three stricken boats on the course," reflected Nick after hearing the dramatic news about his fellow skippers. "I could not contemplate losing my boat out here."
*Nick and SKANDIA have fast night and move up to fifth place. Now sailing in 30 knots of wind and confused seas. "The conditions changed very quickly after having been manageable moments ago."
IN DETAIL :
Nick and SKANDIA have moved up to fifth position in the Transat race on Monday after a drama filled morning on the Atlantic.
Two of the past front-runners are out of the race, stricken and awaiting assistance today. Frenchman Vincent Riou's yacht PRB dismasted at 0530 GMT this morning. Just hours later Bernard Stamm activated the distress beacon on CHEMINEES POUJOULAT - ARMOR LUX after the keel separated from the Swiss entries boat. Both skippers are unharmed.
"I cannot stop thinking about the three stricken boats on the course," reflected Nick after hearing the news about his fellow skippers. "I could not contemplate losing my boat out here."
"Those guys are a long way from nowhere. Stamm's situation is very serious and I hope he gets aid quickly." The Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC) in Halifax, Nova Scotia, confirmed earlier that a Hercules
search and rescue plane has been dispatched to Stamm's last known position.
These withdrawals and some extremely fast sailing last night have lifted SKANDIA from ninth yesterday to fifth today. New Zealander Mike Sanderson on PINDAR has taken the lead back from ECOVER who is under a mile behind, France's Dominic Wavre on TEMENOS holds third, 57 miles astern of PINDAR.
SKANDIA had been on a charge all night, closing in on Englishman Conrad Humphrey's on HELLOMOTO. Over the past 24 hours, SKANDIA has covered 245 miles, 13 more than the fourth-placed British yacht (an average of half a knot quicker). "It's a solid 30 knots, very rough with a confused and steep sea," reported
Nick just after 0930 GMT. "The conditions changed very quickly after having been manageable moments ago."
"I've just done one of the dodgiest sail changes from solent to staysail [both foresails]," continued Nick. "I was totally underwater and being thrown about on deck. It was as a real toughie. I'm now soaking wet from
sweat. "I was worrying about the light airs tomorrow. I reckon I will be ready for a break by then !"
The have started to descend south-west and the Open 60 fleet should compress. This Transat race is still wide open. There is also the prospect of another depression before the yachts reach Boston and that too could shake-up the race order.
IMOCA POSITIONS 1100 GMT
NAME / SKIPPER / LAT / LONG / DIST
1. PINDAR ALPHAGRAPHICS / Sanderson / 47 05.07'N / 44 13.53'W / 1166 to finish
2. ECOVER / Golding / 46 56.06 'N / 44 11.78'W / 0.73 behind leader
3. TEMENOS / Wavre / 47 50.99'N / 42 53.67'W / 57.24 to finish
4. HELLOMOTO / Humphrey's / 48 15.60'N / 40 19.12'W / 162.46 to finish
5. SKANDIA / Moloney / 47 28.81'N / 40 02.31'W / 172.06 behind leader
ABD CHEMINÉES P - AMOR LUX / STAMM
ABD PRB / RIOU
ABD VIRBAC / Dick
QINETIQ FACT OF THE DAY : IN THE DRINK
The sea is a cruel place for Man, a fundamentally terrestrial dwelling mammal poorly equipped to survive upon it and, even less so, in it.
Immersion in cold water is one of the greatest hazards to which the human body can be exposed. Water immersion involves convection and conduction and can cause faster cooling of the core body temperature. This is illustrated by the fact that at rest cooling via cold water is 25 times greater than cooling by air of the same temperature. That is why you can put your hand in the air in a freezer cabinet and not feel too cold, but if you touch the sides of the freezer your fingers immediately feel very cold.
The situation gets dramatically worse if you are exercising in cold water, e.g. swimming to a boat or a life raft. Under these circumstances the heat loss to the skin can be more than 70 times greater than in air. A normally clothed individual would be unlikely to survive for more than one hour in still water at 5ºC.
Further information see http://www.qinetiq.com
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